Realto Inc., operator of the first fully-automated, web-based marketplace for the secondary trading of illiquid real estate and alternative securities, successfully closed its latest venture round of $4.5 million, bringing the total proceeds raised to date to $8 million.
The round was led by Firebrand Ventures with investments from KCRise Fund and other key contributors. The previous $3.5 million round, which closed in December 2020, was led by Gary Fish and JE Dunn.
“We’re excited to welcome these important investors as we continue to expand our robust trading capabilities across the universe of alternative products,” said Realto CEO Brian King. “These proceeds will be used to fund growth and expansion, including the hiring of important personnel across the Realto organization.”
“We are also pleased to announce that John Fein, Firebrand managing partner, joins the Realto board,” he added.
“We are thrilled to lead this round in Realto,” Mr. Fein said. “The team has deep experience building exchanges and facilitating commercial real estate transactions, and is targeting a huge addressable market of traditionally illiquid real estate and other alternative assets. The Realto platform is poised to unlock billions of dollars of value for their customers and we’re very excited to support their growth.”
“KCRise Fund is delighted to invest in Realto and its seasoned leaders,” said Darcy Howe, the firm’s Founder and Managing Director. “The team has an established history of successfully disrupting highly complex industries and we are excited to partner with them in scaling their private securities marketplace.”
The latest investments cap a busy period at Realto as it seeks to provide all investors with the daily liquidity opportunities that didn’t exist previously for secondary trading of real estate and other illiquid securities:
- In November, the company received broker-dealer approval from the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, clearing the firm to launch.
- In December, Realto’s proprietary trading platform went live with trades in Phillips Edison & Co. (PECO) Class B restricted shares.
- In January, Realto received U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission clearance to operate an Alternative Trading System (ATS), allowing the firm to offer additional secondary trading opportunities via enhancements such as additional order types and two-sided quotes.
